We're Doing Disney Again Someday...Plus One! ~ Come Read my Trip Report!!!

[sock2you]

Ok i'm a long time lurker first time poster. So first off Dug Baby is adorable! Second, the reason that brought me out of lurkerdom is the stroller. We recently got back from a Disney trip and rented a stroller much like your new Britax, it was awesome. The only problem I had with it though was those back wheels stick out way more than i'm used to and I kept getting caught on tight turns. So take it out a bunch and get used to the wider back wheels or you'll be caching them on pillars and corners in the stores and around the parks.

 

[Leshaface]

Ooh I may have to steal your idea on making a banner if you don't mind That's a great idea! Now I wish he was posing with a character in his monthly pictures.

I think you'll be way happier with that new stroller you got. I have one that looks similar (the City Mini) and we love it! I love the large canopy for shade and that one looks just as big as ours. Is it a quick fold, like with one hand? Your other stroller looks a little too bulky for Disney transportation, I would say.

I took an Infantino Support Carrier and the Moby wrap every time we went to a park and it was always placed underneath the stroller. I never took it out to go on attractions and there was never any problems with people looking around. Especially if there are tons of other strollers around, people are pretty much just trying to get to their stroller and move onto their next place, so I wouldn't worry. In fact, when we would park the stroller in areas where are there are thousands of other strollers (like in Fantasyland or over near the Living Seas in Epcot where stroller parking is) I would leave his diaper bag. I wouldn't leave expensive things in his bag like cameras or ID's. Never had one issue.

Also, just a tip because I saw so many with our exact same color stroller, I put the 'First Visit' pins pinned to the top of the stroller, so when I would look out among the seas of strollers, I could see the pins on top.

 

[cindianne320]

Good question about the Ergo. I plan on bringing mine this time as well, and think we're going to have to bring it on the rides. Too valuable to just leave!

 

[reelmom]

Great update. I can't believe she is going to be 10 months old. The princess cruise looked like lots of fun. I bet DugBaby is going to be a pro on her first Disney trip.

 

[Dugette]

Dug Baby seemed to have an enjoyed her boat trip! And how cool that it was the same place you guys celebrated your wedding.

It was really cool to be back in the same place. Though, it was weird to look at a certain spot and think, "That's where our cake was!" and it was just empty.

I think you're going to like the Britax. I have a City Mini, which is just like the stroller in the picture, and I can't imagine maneuvering anything else. I can steer it one handed on my walks, while holding a dog leash, and I know that'll come in handy if I have to go in stores at the parks. Plus, lighter is always better. Not to mention it's a compact looking stroller, so it should fit into the monorail spaces better.

I do have to agree with you on the storage space, though; there's not a lot. Maybe you could bring a backpack that has more room for baby essentials?

Thanks for the feedback! I have heard that it's almost the same as your stroller, so that's good to know what you think about it. I tried the one-handed-while-walking-the-dog thing with it and it worked okay. I have done that many times with the Chicco, though, so I think I'm more used to that. This one is so light that, if the dog pulled, it was hard to control the stroller. I think I just need to adjust to it. Of course, I'll probably keep using the Chicco for neighborhood walks, since I've been keeping the Britax in the car. I've used it a bunch when out and about and really like it. It folds fairly small for the trunk and is easy to fold and unfold one-handed. And I love the huge sunshade!

Hmm, I've never thought about what to do with the Ergo when it's not in use. I'd say clip the waist part on, but that'd get old and uncomfortable, especially when you're trying to sit and hold the baby and a bag. Perhaps if you hide it really well under the bag you leave in the stroller? I know that's risky, though.

Yeah, I had those same thoughts. I'm leaning towards maybe hiding it, but not sure yet.

I had a friend who just came back from Disney with their 1 year old, and they had an uber expensive stroller, so to prevent anyone from thinking about stealing it, they removed the front wheel and put in their bag while they went on a ride. The CMs could still move the stroller when needed, but nobody would think about taking off with a stroller that was missing some wheels. It might not be something you're concerned about, but when I heard it, I was like, "I need to tell DISers with babies that idea, just in case one of them becomes a little wary while at the parks."

Ha, that's a clever idea. I know the front wheel is easily removable. Not sure we'll need to do that, but something to keep in mind!

Ok i'm a long time lurker first time poster. So first off Dug Baby is adorable! Second, the reason that brought me out of lurkerdom is the stroller. We recently got back from a Disney trip and rented a stroller much like your new Britax, it was awesome. The only problem I had with it though was those back wheels stick out way more than i'm used to and I kept getting caught on tight turns. So take it out a bunch and get used to the wider back wheels or you'll be caching them on pillars and corners in the stores and around the parks.

Thanks for coming out of lurkerdom to share your experience! I have been noticing that too with the wheels. I've caught them a few times, but I think I'm getting used to it. I've also noticed that sometimes I walk towards one side or the other, rather than in the middle (especially if I'm also walking the dog) and I tend to kick the wheels on this much more than with the Chicco. Probably due to the wider stance. I've also noticed that I need to work on my steering. With the two front wheels, the Chicco doesn't drift as much. With the Britax, I feel a little back-and-forth movement sometimes, probably because there's just the single front wheel point. I'm sure I'll get used to it.

Ooh I may have to steal your idea on making a banner if you don't mind That's a great idea! Now I wish he was posing with a character in his monthly pictures.

Steal away, since I stole the idea in the first place! It is getting harder and harder to get her to keep Minnie in the pictures. She was throwing her out right after I sat her down this time...I had to keep putting her back in the chair.

I think you'll be way happier with that new stroller you got. I have one that looks similar (the City Mini) and we love it! I love the large canopy for shade and that one looks just as big as ours. Is it a quick fold, like with one hand? Your other stroller looks a little too bulky for Disney transportation, I would say.

Yes, quick fold. Push a button, then lift the handle and it automatically folds and locks. Very nice! It will be much easier to deal with on Disney buses I think!

I took an Infantino Support Carrier and the Moby wrap every time we went to a park and it was always placed underneath the stroller. I never took it out to go on attractions and there was never any problems with people looking around. Especially if there are tons of other strollers around, people are pretty much just trying to get to their stroller and move onto their next place, so I wouldn't worry. In fact, when we would park the stroller in areas where are there are thousands of other strollers (like in Fantasyland or over near the Living Seas in Epcot where stroller parking is) I would leave his diaper bag. I wouldn't leave expensive things in his bag like cameras or ID's. Never had one issue.

Thanks for sharing your experience! I will say that I doubt diaper bags and baby carriers are hot theft items at Disney, but it's a little unsettling to leave sort-of expensive items unattended. But, then again, the stroller itself fits that description and I'm not too worried about that.

Also, just a tip because I saw so many with our exact same color stroller, I put the 'First Visit' pins pinned to the top of the stroller, so when I would look out among the seas of strollers, I could see the pins on top.

That's a good idea. We'll definitely have to do something to identify it, since we're not used to finding our stroller in a crowd at all!

Good question about the Ergo. I plan on bringing mine this time as well, and think we're going to have to bring it on the rides. Too valuable to just leave!

I know, it's hard to think about leaving something like that!

Great update. I can't believe she is going to be 10 months old. The princess cruise looked like lots of fun. I bet DugBaby is going to be a pro on her first Disney trip.

I can't believe she's 10 months old, either! Yes, the princess cruise was a good time (until she got too tired). I sure hope she does well on the trip!

 

[Dugette]

Dug Baby turned 10 months old a week ago. It was quite the struggle to get a picture, because she just wanted to rip off the month sticker and climb out of the chair. A book finally distracted her enough to get something decent:



Yes, it's the "let's do this later, Mommy, I'm reading" photo! Also a couple of cute semi-blurry ones:





Guess the book was funny!

Last weekend, I took her out to the zoo and we tested out the new stroller. I really liked it and she seemed pretty comfortable too:



I also took her out to get a better view at one point:



She is really good at standing these days! Not walking yet, but it probably won't be long!

I couldn't resist getting her some more Disney attire for the trip recently. First, got this shirt on clearance for $2 at Target. Probably because it's sort-of 4th-of-July themed, I guess, but I think it's just a cute shirt:



And, of course, she needs pool attire! So, she now has a Minnie swimsuit, hooded towel, and sunglasses:



I know the pink towel doesn't really coordinate with the red swimsuit and sunglasses, but it's so cute I don't care. Hey, it's all Minnie Mouse...good enough!

On another note, we have been waiting and waiting for some sort of Disney discount to take advantage of for our trip. We haven't gotten any PIN codes, we don't have APs (so can't get those discounts, unless we get an AP), and the December Disney Visa and general public discounts aren't out yet. I guess we do technically have the AAA discount, but it's only 10% of our room and we need more than that.

The rumor is that Disney Visa discounts will be released on Monday and general public a few days later (August 1st). Word is that our dates are not going to be included in Free Dining, but that there should be a Room-Only offer. We have been hoping for room-only, as it's a bigger discount when staying at the Poly. We really need a minimum of 20% off, but hopefully more, to fit into our budget. Keep your fingers crossed! We do have Disney Visas, so Monday looks like the day!

 

[sock2you]

Thanks for coming out of lurkerdom to share your experience! I have been noticing that too with the wheels. I've caught them a few times, but I think I'm getting used to it. I've also noticed that sometimes I walk towards one side or the other, rather than in the middle (especially if I'm also walking the dog) and I tend to kick the wheels on this much more than with the Chicco. Probably due to the wider stance. I've also noticed that I need to work on my steering. With the two front wheels, the Chicco doesn't drift as much. With the Britax, I feel a little back-and-forth movement sometimes, probably because there's just the single front wheel point. I'm sure I'll get used to it.

I did run into the wheels as well but adjusted fairly quickly, although it's been a while since i've pushed a stroller regularly as my DD is almost 3 and prefers to walk. We had the City Mini and it folded similar to your Britax and was a dream to fold down and pop back up when we got on the train or monorail. Another note to make sure that your bottom basket isn't too full when you fold it down or it won't be nearly as flat, we found ourselves taking our sweaters out of the bottom basket to make sure it folded nicely.

 

[AprilRenee]

Ok. On leaving the ergo...today we went somewhere and left the stroller off to the side while we went to pet goats. My city mini has a pocket underneath and on the back. I stuffed my ergo in the back pocket and its mostly hidden. I think if I was at Disney I'd stuff it in there and feel fine leaving it with the stroller. Just a thought.

And adorable 10 month photos. Caden's got really hard to do here too! Lol. 11 months I think I had to do it twice before I finally got a decent photo. He moved SO fast! Haha

 

[jc040404]

Love the ten month pics! She looks too adorable with that book. It must've been a good one!

Good luck on the December discount! I should probably start crossing my fingers for that one, too. I can't believe it's nearly August already!

I'm late on the stroller talk, but that really does look just like the City Mini. LOVED that stroller! I was actually really sad when I sold it. Why do these silly kids need to grow up anyway? It was perfect in the parks, with my only complaint being the lack of that child tray. I liked the extra barrier from the crowds. They're fine without it, but I was just super used to it being there when we finally switched.

I wouldn't know what to do about the carrier, but it sounds like April has a decent plan if your stroller has the same set-up. I can't say that I've ever noticed one of them left on a stroller at WDW, and I'm usually commenting to John about how much stuff people leave. Maybe they're just well hidden! That would help! We only had little things disappear during our stroller days, and mostly during the super busy times. (sunblock, little toys, Andrew's sunglasses) I always had a folding diaper changer thing (whatever you call 'em!) under the stroller and no one ever bothered it. Hope it'll be OK!

 

[Leshaface]

Cute 10 month pics! Wow she's standing great! DS just started crawling the other day, but not very good. He kind of slithers.

Hopefully a really good discount will come out soon for you!

 

[dtr_angel]

I absolutely love your monthly picture updates - they crack me up! Dug Baby is so adorable!! Happy 10 months to your baby girl!

I love all the disney attire she has, and what a tiny little thing... Gavin is in 24 months

We bought the Britax B-agile for Disney and LOVED it! It was perfect. I had been planning on getting the City Mini and read tons of stroller reviews... luckily I checked out the B-agile before I bought the city mini because I love the britax and it was A LOT cheaper. I think it was about $165 on amazon... I had been looking for an excuse to get the amazon visa, I have prime and shop on amazon a lot so we went ahead and did it and got $50 off, so it was only $115.

I hope you get a room only discount for December!!!

 

[Dugette]

I did run into the wheels as well but adjusted fairly quickly, although it's been a while since i've pushed a stroller regularly as my DD is almost 3 and prefers to walk. We had the City Mini and it folded similar to your Britax and was a dream to fold down and pop back up when we got on the train or monorail. Another note to make sure that your bottom basket isn't too full when you fold it down or it won't be nearly as flat, we found ourselves taking our sweaters out of the bottom basket to make sure it folded nicely.

Thanks for the tips! I think I'll get used to it pretty quickly. It really is handy to keep in the car for quick trips - easy to do one-handed. I'm sure we'll be using it out at the zoo again soon too. I hadn't even thought about leaving things in the basket, as our Chicco dumps all the basket contents on the ground when you fold it!

Ok. On leaving the ergo...today we went somewhere and left the stroller off to the side while we went to pet goats. My city mini has a pocket underneath and on the back. I stuffed my ergo in the back pocket and its mostly hidden. I think if I was at Disney I'd stuff it in there and feel fine leaving it with the stroller. Just a thought.

Genius idea! This is why I love the DIS! There is indeed a fully zippered large back pocket! I'll have to try out the Ergo and make sure it fits in there, but I bet it would! Love it!

And adorable 10 month photos. Caden's got really hard to do here too! Lol. 11 months I think I had to do it twice before I finally got a decent photo. He moved SO fast! Haha

Thanks! Definitely is more of a challenge than it used to be!

Love the ten month pics! She looks too adorable with that book. It must've been a good one!

I'm pretty sure it was a Mickey Mouse book, so yes! And thanks.

Good luck on the December discount! I should probably start crossing my fingers for that one, too. I can't believe it's nearly August already!

Thanks! Be on the lookout tomorrow!

I'm late on the stroller talk, but that really does look just like the City Mini. LOVED that stroller! I was actually really sad when I sold it. Why do these silly kids need to grow up anyway? It was perfect in the parks, with my only complaint being the lack of that child tray. I liked the extra barrier from the crowds. They're fine without it, but I was just super used to it being there when we finally switched.

I'm starting to think I'm the only person in the world who doesn't have a City Mini. That's good to know you liked it so much. I know there is an optional child tray, but I'm not sure if we'll get that. We have one on the Chicco, but it doesn't get used at all. But I agree about the extra barrier thing. The Chicco one keeps Bailey's leash from getting Dug Baby if Bailey crosses in front of her (unlike in the Britax, where I had to grab it quick before it got her). Of course, without the tray, I don't know how Dug Baby will get comfy:

I wouldn't know what to do about the carrier, but it sounds like April has a decent plan if your stroller has the same set-up. I can't say that I've ever noticed one of them left on a stroller at WDW, and I'm usually commenting to John about how much stuff people leave. Maybe they're just well hidden! That would help! We only had little things disappear during our stroller days, and mostly during the super busy times. (sunblock, little toys, Andrew's sunglasses) I always had a folding diaper changer thing (whatever you call 'em!) under the stroller and no one ever bothered it. Hope it'll be OK!

I hope so too. This is really a whole new world for us. We always saw the stroller corrals, but really never paid attention on our other trips. On a side note, we have one of those diaper changer things and love it!

Cute 10 month pics! Wow she's standing great! DS just started crawling the other day, but not very good. He kind of slithers.

Thanks. I think it's been a really busy developmental time for her lately. She just started "real" crawling, but was doing her own drag-on-belly-with-left-hand-while-reaching-for-things-with-right-hand for a few weeks before that. And she went from not trying to stand to standing all the time within maybe a week. She also finally figured out how to clap the other day (just started out of the blue!). Plus, she's now waving, high-fiving, and doing a lot of imitating of us. So much fun. And she calls everything "Bob." We need to find someone named Bob and impress him, I think. I'm sure Calvin will start flying through some new skills soon too. It's crazy how fast things change!

Hopefully a really good discount will come out soon for you!

Thank you! We'll be on the phone with Disney tomorrow morning, hoping for the best.

I absolutely love your monthly picture updates - they crack me up! Dug Baby is so adorable!! Happy 10 months to your baby girl!

Thanks! I just can't get over how much she's changed. In her 1 month photo, she and Minnie are about the same size and she's just slumped over there in the chair. And now she tosses Minnie around and can't hold still.

I love all the disney attire she has, and what a tiny little thing... Gavin is in 24 months

Yeah, she's on the smaller side. I actually noticed a picture you had of Gavin in his stroller and thought it was funny that his legs came down so far. Dug Baby's feet just barely make it over the edge right now.

We bought the Britax B-agile for Disney and LOVED it! It was perfect. I had been planning on getting the City Mini and read tons of stroller reviews... luckily I checked out the B-agile before I bought the city mini because I love the britax and it was A LOT cheaper. I think it was about $165 on amazon... I had been looking for an excuse to get the amazon visa, I have prime and shop on amazon a lot so we went ahead and did it and got $50 off, so it was only $115.

Great to hear you liked it at Disney! And that's quite a deal! I thought my $150 was pretty good, but that's even better.

I hope you get a room only discount for December!!!

I hope so too! I've been lurking the Resort Discount forum of the DIS and it's a crazy house over there. The rumor was that discounts (room-only and free dining) for Fall would be released August 1st with probable July 29th early bookings for Disney Visa holders. Well, the Disney Visa thing didn't happen, which threw everybody for a loop and that board got VERY dramatic. However, everyone seems to feel pretty good about tomorrow still. We'll be calling in at 6am our time (7am WDW time) to snatch up the best deal we can get. I hope there is one to be had!

 

[Dugette]

Woo hoo! Offers went live on the website at 11pm Central and we got 30% off our whole stay! Yay!!!!! Back to sleep now...

 

[AprilRenee]

Woo hoo! Offers went live on the website at 11pm Central and we got 30% off our whole stay! Yay!!!!! Back to sleep now...

Woot!!!!

 

[karebear23]

Dug Baby is getting so big! She is just adorable! My ds was 6 months on his 1st trip to WDW. It was tons of fun!
So glad you got a great discount!! Oh and we will be there that weekend as well!!

 

[Dugette]

Woot!!!!

Thanks!

Dug Baby is getting so big! She is just adorable! My ds was 6 months on his 1st trip to WDW. It was tons of fun!
So glad you got a great discount!! Oh and we will be there that weekend as well!!

Thanks! That's so cool that you took your DS at 6 months. I bet that was a ton of fun. Wow, popular weekend, I guess!

 

[Dugette]

Hi, all! Lots of pre-trip necessities have happened since I last updated! We have a room booked that fits our budget, free flights on the dates we wanted, and Dug Baby had a good “Disney training” outing today.

We’ll start with the room. I probably don’t need to tell anyone here, but the Polynesian is EXPENSIVE. And I am bargain shopper. Unfortunately, the Poly never goes on clearance, so the best you can do is combine a good Disney special offer with discounted WDW Gift Cards for payment, so that’s just what we did. Thanks to the tip-off from the DIS, we knew when the fall discounts would likely be announced. We also knew that room-only would be a much better deal for us than Free Dining. So, once the offers opened up on the website, we were able to pounce. We initially only had a 10% discount, having booked with the AAA rate. The Disney offer was a much better 30% off and it applied to our whole stay! Admittedly, it did take some work to make this switch – the new reservation (essentially our discount back-up) was easy to make, but getting through on the phone lines to cancel it and apply the discount to our existing reservation instead was a lot of work. The phone lines were so jammed that morning from everyone wanting discounts and free dining. Dug did eventually get through after about an hour and 45 minutes on hold, I think. Crazy.

Besides the 30% off, our extra savings is coming from paying for the room (and everything else on the trip) with WDW Gift Cards that I purchased from Target using two 10% discounts I had (team member & healthy pregnancy incentive) and one 5% discount (Red Card). I would have used another extra 5% (Pharmacy Rewards), but that couldn’t be combined with the healthy pregnancy incentive I had gotten through my health insurance plan. Anyway, for any fellow math geeks out there , here’s the breakdown:

Regular “rack” rate for our 7 night stay, Poly Garden View: $3758 (average of $537/night…our last night is a lot more than the rest, due to “season” change)

30% off special rate from Disney for same room: $2630.60

Paying for that special rate with discounted gift cards: $2024.25 (average of $289/night)

That means we are paying close to half (about 54% actually) of the rack rate! See, as close to a clearance at the Poly as you can get, I think. (Well, except for our Dec. 2010 trip where we got 40% off with APs, our first night free, then upgraded to Hawaii Club for free…that averaged in the low/mid $200’s per night, I believe. But that was highly unusual and not something you could plan for).

So, I’m proud of the savings, but still…$289/night is A LOT of money for a hotel room! We’re able to justify it to ourselves on this trip because there is a lot of value in having a room that is easy to go back to for naps and transportation that allows you to keep baby in the stroller. And, of course, we absolutely love the atmosphere at the Poly. It’s a splurge. I definitely see future trips at Pop Century and such!

So, yay we got the room reservation we wanted at a price that fits the budget we set! But we still didn’t have flights. That was a whole other ordeal.

See, $289/night for a room meant our budget for airfare was $0. Seriously. Our plan had been to use the 25k miles we each had with Delta to get flights. Easier said than done, though. There was just nothing we were okay with, schedule-wise, for our dates and 25k miles. In the pre-baby days, we could make the less-than-ideal times work. But we didn’t feel comfortable doing that this time. Taking a flight that gets there at 11pm might have been fine with Dug Baby sleeping on the plane. But it might have been a nightmare of over-tired screaming inconsolable baby who’s unable to fall asleep on the plane. No thanks.

So, since nothing good seemed to be coming up with Delta (it changed from time to time, but still nothing), we decided to look for other avenues to free flights.

Dug had over 20k points from his Flexperks card, which is enough for up to a $400 flight with several airlines to chose from. However, we’d still have to pay for my ticket. That wouldn’t fit our $0 budget. So, I decided to see what kind of bonus I could get for getting a Flexperks card of my own. Turns out that I could get enough for a $400 ticket by spending $2500 on it. Well, we had some medical bills sitting around and some other spending to do, so we got me a card and put over $2500 on it (to pay off right away – just clarifying, since we don’t do credit card debt anymore). However, due to delays in receiving the card initially, the statement closing date was right before I got the card, so we had to wait a full month before the points became available. Finally, I got the points and we stepped up our airfare stalking.

Our ideal flights were ones that left here at 10am and got to Orlando around 2pm, then leaving there around 4pm and getting home at 6:30pm or so, which would get us to WDW with time to enjoy our first day and get Dug Baby to bed at a reasonable time when we returned. However, that 10am flight was just not going under $400. We’d seen it do that briefly a couple times prior to me having my points, but we did not have high hopes of it happening again. However, a fare sale by Southwest this past week got Delta to drop their prices somewhat. The 10am was still over $400, but the 1pm flight (with the return flight we wanted) was just under $400. It arrived at 5pm in Orlando. Not great, but probably enough time to check in and have dinner at Kona. We hesitated for quite awhile, hoping our 10am flight would go down, but finally decided we didn’t want to chance having to settle for something worse and snapped up the 1pm. So, two free tickets for the days we want, but 3 hours less of vacation. Also, we’ll get $25 each from Flexperks to use as we wish on the flights (food? Wifi? Something else?) and we get our first checked bag (each) free because we each have a Delta American Express card too. So, not too bad.

And I’m sure that’s much more info that most people care to know. What can I say, when I update, I update!

Anyway, today was a good Disney training run, even though the purpose of our trip was wasted. We went to the Mall of America to go to the Disney Store and purchase our WDW tickets. We thought this would be a good way to not have to read gift cards over the phone for payment or use up time at check-in running them. However, that was not to be. First of all, they only sell 7 day (or less) tickets there and we wanted 8 (not sure if we’ll need the first day, but the cost difference is so small at that point we figured better to have it if needed). They also said that we wouldn’t be able to link them to our My Disney Experience account, which we want to do in order to reserve Fast Pass+ times, if available during our trip (we think they were wrong and we could have linked them, but not positive). Finally, they would have had to break the transaction up into several to take our gift card payment. Don’t know why. But, between those things, we decided to just call and read gift cards over the phone, so we’ll probably do that tomorrow.

We did, however, get Dug Baby a little Minnie Mouse plush that she loved. She’ll be having a Minnie themed birthday party next month, so the more Minnies the merrier. Also, we tried a headband on her. She doesn’t like things on her head. This was the best we could do before she pulled it off:



Hard to see, but she actually is wearing a Minnie Mouse onesie there too. This happened next:



Silly girl!

The new stroller is working really well. My mom was with us today and was impressed at how easy it was to steer the stroller. My only real complaint is that the basket underneath is so small that we can’t fit her diaper bag in it. However, April’s idea about putting the Ergo in the back pocket (for Disney) was genius – it works and that’s where it is right now, actually! Also, I got the Britax parent organizer attachment so that we have a storage console at handlebar level now. SO much better. I need a place to put phone/keys/water and this works great and stays put when you fold the stroller too. We also ordered the stroller bag for when we gate check it at the airport. I know it’s not necessary, but I got a decent deal and we’d like to keep the stroller in good shape for a long time to come, so it may help with that. Especially keeping it clean, because the seating area folds outward on this.

Anyway, after that we had lunch at the Rainforest Café. Yes, like the ones at Disney. But in Minnesota. So we don’t have to waste precious Disney dining time at one. I had actually been there before, but not for years and years – probably not long after it opened. Anyway, it was loud, as I’ve heard the Disney ones are (I’m including T-Rex in that, as it’s the same ownership and same idea, different theme). Hard to hear each other across the table. We were seated right by an aquarium, which was nice. The rainforest action was kinda neat. Dug Baby did really good, sitting in her high chair and taking it all in:



She had a pouch of peaches and some puffs to start, while we waited. And water in her Disney Princess sippy cup. She enjoyed some of the bread that came with my soup and some of the broccoli that came with my sandwich. She’s a good little eater.

Dug really had food problems, though. He ordered the Cobb Salad, expecting something yummy like we once had at the Brown Derby. Instead, he got what seemed to be a salad drowning in dressing that had been left to sit around for awhile and was not the least bit crisp or fresh-tasting. And it was not a cheap salad. He tried to choke it down, but eventually told the waitress that it wasn’t good. She was eager to help and get him something better (quickly, since it had taken forever to get our food). He ended up with the turkey wrap. It was better than the salad, but really, really salty. Dug isn’t normally food picky, but he was having terrible luck. He ate most of it anyway, since he didn’t want to send another thing back. My food (chicken salad sandwich) and my mom’s burger were decent, so that was good. Based on Disney location reviews, I expected average food. Too bad that Dug’s didn’t even meet that marker. So, yeah, don’t expect to see us making an ADR for Rainforest or T-Rex anytime soon!

The best part was probably when the frog mascot came around and played peek-a-boo with Dug Baby. She got a kick out of it. When he walked away, she just strained to look after him with an expression of, “Did you guys just see that thing?!” Cute. Afterwards, he was available for pictures. Dug Baby was totally cool with the character meet:



She even high-fived him. After lunch, Dug wasn’t feeling so good, but we walked around the mall for awhile and collected some more Shopkicks (to get more spending money for WDW). Then headed out. Not the most exciting outing ever. But, Dug Baby did GREAT! She’s such a happy baby. She even went a long time without a nap or nursing and was totally fine. She just loves looking around and relaxing in her stroller. And eating, of course. I think she’ll love Disney!

In other news, she finished her swimming lessons last weekend:



She’ll probably do more before our trip, but she’s come a long way and is really comfortable in the water now.

And a random thing I had to share. When I was a baby, this doll of my mom’s apparently did something to warrant me joyfully poking her eye out:



Well, I got Dug Baby to re-create it the other day:



In fact, she even went a step further and knocked the doll out too :



Luckily, she plays much nicer with real babies. We visited some friends recently who have a daughter 5 months older than Dug Baby. Their daughter crawled up and hugged Dug Baby. So cute :



Guess that’s about it for now. Dug Baby will be 11 months old on Tuesday, so I’ll probably be back with pictures when I can after that. 11 months has gone by very, very fast.

 

[cindianne320]

Loved the update! Our Disney baby is having a Minnie party on Saturday. I cannot believe they are 1 already! YAY for flights! We got one free flight with credit card points, but had to pay for DH's and DS's. Getting excited for our baby's first trips! Oh- and we eat at Rainforest all the time at MoA- sorry you had a bad experience

 

[Leshaface]

Phew what an update!

You got great rates for the Poly. I'm excited for you guys! And i'm so with you about flights. I would not have minded doing the red-eye, if that meant an additional day at WDW, but now that DS is here, we'll do the 'normal' flights now

I remember last year I had to read off 10 or 15 giftcards on the phone. Didn't take as long as I thought, so you should be okay

Too bad about your experience at Rainforest. We're not extrememly thrilled with that place either.

Aw, love the photo of you with the doll and her with the doll! It looks exactly alike, with the exception of the dog of course!

 

[Dugette]

Loved the update! Our Disney baby is having a Minnie party on Saturday. I cannot believe they are 1 already! YAY for flights! We got one free flight with credit card points, but had to pay for DH's and DS's. Getting excited for our baby's first trips! Oh- and we eat at Rainforest all the time at MoA- sorry you had a bad experience

Yay for another Minnie 1st birthday! I can't believe she's already turning 1. Wow, didn't we just have these kids? Anyway, I hope the party goes really well! I'm glad you got a free flight! Not too much longer to wait for your trip (well, compared to ours, at least). Yeah, overall Rainforest was okay, but Dug would have been better off not eating there, I think. I'm sure it's mostly good, but he just had some bad ordering luck, I guess.

Phew what an update!

Ha, I know, I was thinking it looked like a lot of words!

You got great rates for the Poly. I'm excited for you guys! And i'm so with you about flights. I would not have minded doing the red-eye, if that meant an additional day at WDW, but now that DS is here, we'll do the 'normal' flights now

Thanks. Yeah, I was just thinking that about 3 years ago, we took an evening flight out, checked into our resort, then went to the MK, arriving there around midnight (open till 3am)...that would not happen now! I will miss the leaving work and going to the airport routine, though. But we need to keep Dug Baby on some sort of reasonable schedule at this point.

I remember last year I had to read off 10 or 15 giftcards on the phone. Didn't take as long as I thought, so you should be okay

Yeah, Dug didn't have too bad of a time. I think maybe we'll make a few calls over the next few months and just do some of the gift cards each time. I don't know. We'll see.

Too bad about your experience at Rainforest. We're not extrememly thrilled with that place either.

Yeah, it's kinda neat, surroundings-wise, and the service was very friendly, but it didn't really blow me away. If I were at Disney and eating there, I'd feel like I could have made a much better dining choice.

Aw, love the photo of you with the doll and her with the doll! It looks exactly alike, with the exception of the dog of course!

Thanks! I love that she had the same reaction I did...must stick finger in doll's eye! Actually, I think it's because the eyes open and close, so they look like fun to play with to a baby. And, yeah, Bailey's always photobombing my pictures these days.